In Mormonism, the Garden of Gethsemane is considered the primary place where Jesus atoned for the sins of the world. Mormons teach that in the garden, Jesus took upon himself the weight of humanity’s sins, suffering so intensely that he bled from every pore (Luke 22:44; Doctrine and Covenants 19:18). This event is emphasized as the central act of the atonement, often more than his death on the cross.
Because of this, Mormon teaching and devotional life highlight Gethsemane as the place where forgiveness was secured, with the crucifixion and resurrection seen as completing the atonement. Many Mormons, therefore, focus more on Christ’s suffering in the garden than on his substitutionary sacrifice on the cross.
Biblical Christianity, however, teaches that Christ’s atonement was accomplished through his shed blood and death on the cross (1 Peter 2:24; Colossians 2:14). While his anguish in Gethsemane shows the depth of his obedience and suffering, it is his death that fully pays the penalty for sin.
